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Nov 1, 2009 - 11:43 PM |
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These Doors Are CLEEEEEEEEEEEAAAN!! |
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Those bastards from OSHA came through my workplace today, and immediately condemned the three boxes of Mister Clean Magic Erasers that we keep around so that we can sanitize the knicks and cuts in our whiteboard countertops. They weren't pre-approved for use, so they had to go. Because the erasers had already been rung up as shrink, we split them amongst ourselves and each took one home.
I'd never used one of them before. But coworkers assured me that they were pretty handy at cleaning stubborn dirt and gunk that normally would require excessive scouring. So I gave it the best test I could think of: my bedroom door.
Back before I moved downstairs around 1996, my house was a duplex that we rented out. The last tenant signed a one-year lease and then decided she would take up chain smoking. By the end of her lease, this entire side of the house was caked in tar and grime from her two-pack-a-day habit. Of particular disgust was the door to what is now my bedroom; because of the cigarette tar that built up on her fingers, the area surrounding the doorknob on both sides, and the place where you'd usually push the door open became absolutely caked in grime. Over time, it darkened and became a sickly brown.
I'd tried various solvents - 409, Clorox, rubbing alcohol, Comet, Murphy's Oil Soap, witchhazel - but nothing cleared this grime away. I'd reduced it a bit, making the color less intense, but it refused to go away forever. I just sort of learned to live with it, spraying the area with Lysol now and then to make myself feel better about touching it constantly.
Thus, I figured if the Magic Eraser could hack through that, it could get rid of just about anything.
And it did! Five minutes of moderately firm wiping and the gunk completely vanished. It's such a small thing but I am so elated that my bedroom door is once again completely white! I don't know what that eraser is made of but it's my new favorite material.
I feel like I've discovered the treasure of the Sierra Madre. Finally, an effective cleaning tool that caters to my lazy streak! The only downside is that the magic eraser also completely sucked the natural oils out the skin on my hands. But I will tolerate that if it means my door is finally the right color.
This opens up so many possibilities, as there are numerous other surfaces I'd like to clean to a better finish. I hope these Magic Erasers don't cost an arm and a leg, since I plan to go out and purchase a dozen or so tomorrow. I know I will find uses for them.
I feel a bit like Sass, beaming with joy over something so small and domestic.
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